After a sharp fall in 2017, economic growth in MENA is projected to rebound to 3.1 percent in 2018, thanksto the positive global outlook, oil prices stabilizing at relatively higher levels, stabilization policies andreforms, and recovery and reconstruction as conflicts recede. The outlook for...

The COVID-19 pandemic has, with alarming speed, dealt a heavy blow to an already-weak global economy, which is expected to slide into its deepest recession since the second world war, despite unprecedented policy support. The global recession would be deeper if countries take longer to bring the...

Paul Wolfowitz, President of the World Bank, and Ambassador Andrew Young engaged in a roundtable discussion on economic development, moderated by Dean Bahl of Georgia State. Wolfowitz has made Africa the first priority of the Bank. There is really a chance for Africa to turn the corner. It's...

This edition of the Kazakhstan Economic Update is part of a biannual series designed to monitor economic developments in Kazakhstan. It presents a concise analysis of macroeconomic and structural conditions from late 2015 through the first five months of 2016

Amidst a turbulent regional political and security environment, Jordan wrestles with sluggish growth and high unemployment. A number of risks materialized in 2015, particularly related to security spillovers and their negative impact on tourism, construction, investment and exports. As such, the...

The Kyrgyz economy has remained resilient in the face of continued significant external head winds in 2015, but sources of vulnerability have increased.While overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP)growth is estimated to have slowed to 3.5 percent in 2015, this deceleration was mostly on accountof...

The Thai economy shows signs of a nascent recovery but faces challenges on the path toward a broad-based and sustained recovery. The Thai economy accelerated to 2.8 percent in 2015, compared to 0.9 percent in 2014, partly on the basis of government consumption and investment, and partly on...

While remaining robust, growth in 2015 eased slightly to 7.0 percent, slightly below the 7.1 percent achieved in 2014. The performance of the garment sector improved in 2015, while signs of economic moderation and weakness persisted in the tourism and agriculture sectors, respectively....

Following the partial lifting of nuclear-related sanctions in November 2013 under the interim Joint Plan of Action (JPOA), Iran's economy rebounded in 20141 and is estimated to have expanded by 0.5 percent in 2015. A less accommodative monetary policy stance reduced inflationary pressures, with...

The Lao economy is estimated to have expanded by around 7 percent in 2015, a slight moderation from 7.5 percent in 2014. Similar to the last decade, the resource sectors (hydropower and extractives) continued to make an important contribution to growth. Power generation got a boost from the...